[Big Band Guitar]

Originally Posted by JonPR

What do you actually get for your money? Do they track covers, set up search bots on social media?
Do you get legal advice or support if anyone attempts to cover it without getting a license?
Is any kind of publishing deal involved?

I'm asking because I know you have copyright in any song automatically as soon as you've written it. The only problem is proving priority (date of origin). There are may ways if doing that - such as simply posting it online, because the upload is dated. (You could also keep a file copy on hard disk, making sure you never edit it of course. That's equivalent to the old pre-internet method of posting yourself the manuscript with an official proof of postage date.)

Naturally anyone who finds it could then steal it, but your priority is easily proved - provided the original upload is not removed.

Of course, I understand the nervousness about exposing your creations in public in that way. Even if you know you can prove your originality, there's still an expensive and stressful legal process to go through. Hence my questions about what you pay for when you register a copyright.

I have filed many copyrights.

All you get is legal proof you filed and the date you filed, nothing more. Without it proof is a hard road.